


Summer Nights and Bittersweet Goodbyes

by cosmichae



Category: Mo Dao Zu Shi, 陈情令 | The Untamed (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Goodbyes, M/M, Mutual Pining, One Shot, Platonic Soulmates, Sad Ending, Summer Camp
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2020-12-08
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:33:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27961589
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cosmichae/pseuds/cosmichae
Summary: As Wei Wuxian saw Lan Wangji’s train fade away into the horizon and he couldn't see its lights anymore, some heartwarming memories from their now gone summertime flashed back to his mind, leaving him with a rather bittersweet after-taste, and certain that he would never forget this summer.
Relationships: Lán Zhàn | Lán Wàngjī/Wèi Yīng | Wèi Wúxiàn
Comments: 6
Kudos: 22





	Summer Nights and Bittersweet Goodbyes

**Author's Note:**

> This was mainly inspired by EXO's song Cosmic Railway, so I recommend that you listen to it and check out the lyrics before getting started to get in the mood, I hope you like it!

The day Wei Ying had most feared had finally come. Lan Zhan and him would have to part ways and say goodbye, not knowing when would they meet each other again, or if they would at all, for that matter. The weather seemed to match the mood of the day. It was a Sunday, late September, and the sky had a dark grey tone, covered by dense clouds that didn’t let a single ray of sunshine pass through. It was 8 p.m., but the sun was already about to set into the horizon. At this time of the year, days were becoming shorter and the nighttime came earlier, which made the scenario even more bittersweet.

Wei Wuxian was the type to chat all the time and cheer up the mood, talking about everything and anything, even if Lan Zhan didn’t respond most of the time. Today, though, he could only walk in silence a couple of steps behind him as they crossed the station. The train departed in ten minutes, but the both of them didn’t seem to care and walked unhurriedly, as if that could slower time and postpone their goodbye. They finally reached Lan Zhan’s wagon.

‘So,’ sigh, ‘I guess this is it.’ Said Wei Ying.

‘You didn’t have to accompany me all the way here.’

‘Ah, don’t worry. What’s the point if I don’t bother you until the very end?’

The other one slightly curved the corner of his mouth, almost unnoticeably. This was a reaction that Wei Wuxian would have never imagined to receive in the beginning of the summer. They were certainly not the ones to hit it off from the start. Nothing further from the truth, actually. When they first met, it wasn’t hard to tell that Lan Zhan hated his guts.

Wei Ying spent every summer at his parents’ summer camp in the mountains, along with his two siblings. His brother’s friend, Lan Xichen, would also join them as an instructor. However, he couldn’t make it this year. His father had fallen ill a couple of months before, and he had to take care of him. Even though Lan Zhan, his younger brother, insisted that he could still go while he stayed at home with their father, Lan Xichen finally convinced him to go in his place. After all, when autumn came, he would have to move to the city to work, so Lan Wangji would be left alone in charge of the household and their father.

Unlike his older brother, who had a level-headed yet very amicable personality, Lan Zhan was cold as snow and would never let a single emotion show. Wei Ying, on the contrary, couldn’t stay still and liked to interact with everyone, so, of course, he had to try to get closer to this new inscrutable boy. Even though his brother, Jiang Cheng, kept insisting Wei Ying to leave that poor guy alone, he still approached him every time he saw him, and especially enjoyed when they had to monitor an activity with the kids together.

As the days passed, Lan Zhan seemed more and more at ease around Wei Ying, and didn’t mind his presence at all. They even had a couple of drinks during the late hours one night, when the children were already sleeping in their cabins. Lan Zhan, to his surprise, had a couple too many shots and the younger one had had to take care of him, enjoying every bit of it and saving the memory to mock him the day after.

As confusing as it was, he always found himself extremely happy to be around Lan Zhan. He couldn’t help it but feel a little disappointed every time he saw that their names weren’t written down together in the daily activity schedule. Neither could he find an explanation for the following episode, but one day, the kids were playing around and threw Lan Zhan into the pool, consequently making him take his shirt off to get it dry and change. The view was so unexpectedly mesmerising that he found himself unable to move his gaze away from it.

Even though all of these were clear signs that he was developing a crush on Lan Zhan, Wei Wuxian was quite the oblivious type, so he didn’t pay much attention to it. Nonetheless, he could perfectly recall the precise moment he realised that he might have caught feelings for his friend.

It was a clear summer night, in which there also happened to be a meteor shower. The instructors had decided to take the children to a clearing on top of the mountain with blankets and snacks to stargaze and enjoy the astounding scenery. Once they reached the clearing, everyone picked a spot and laid down on their blankets. As expected, the second Wei Ying saw Lan Zhan, he ran straight to his side to lay down with him. Surprisingly enough, the other guy didn’t object to it, and just looked at him without saying a word, which made Wei Ying a bit _too_ delighted.

At some point, it got quiet. Some of the kids were still chatting in a low voice, talking about the starts, or discussing who was better when they had tried archery earlier that day. Some others were exhausted after the busy day of activities and had fallen asleep. Overall, the atmosphere felt very warm and comforting.

Wei Ying couldn’t help but think out loud, ‘This is going to sound cliché, but us humans are _really_ insignificant. There are planets, stars, entire galaxies bigger than ours, and yet we always worry about stupid little things. We’re only here for a very short period of time, I think we should stop overthinking so much and try to enjoy ourselves a little bit more, right?’

When he tilted his head to the side, he saw Lan Zhan staring at him with starry eyes. All of a sudden, the air got dense, and Wei Ying’s heart started racing. He could only stare back and take notice of the boy’s beautiful face, only lit by the moonlight. Saying that he was stunning would be an understatement; that boy looked more godly than human. He had such delicate features, and, unlike the rest of the time, his poker face seemed to show calmness, and even a hint of bliss. For some reason, his glare was making Wei Ying extremely agitated, yet he didn’t look away. He thanked god that it was dark, because he could feel his cheeks and ears starting to burn. The moment seemed to last a lifetime and less than a second at the same time, and neither of them wanted it to end. Just when he felt himself leaning in a little closer, all the children started screaming.

‘Wow! Did you see that?!’, ‘It was huge!’, ‘And it was so bright!’, ‘Did you make a wish?’ All of the kids started to talk excitedly about the shining star that had just crossed the sky above their heads.

‘Wei Ying, I wanted to make a wish but it passed by so fast that I couldn’t think of anything.’ One of the youngest kids said with a little pout on his face.

‘Ugh, I know! I couldn’t do it either. You know what, A-Yuan, let’s cheat and do it now, no one will know. Let’s close our eyes and make our wish, ok?’

In this short period of time, Lan Zhan did not close his eyes. Instead, he maintained his stare on Wei Ying as he made his wish, unaware that they were both actually wishing for the same thing.

After that night, though, nothing really happened, and Wei Ying obviously had no intention to take anything further than having a close friendship with him. He stuck to his usual flirting, but nothing more beyond that. _There’s no way he would be into me, right? He probably likes one of the other instructors, there are some really pretty girls working here,_ Wei Ying thought to himself. This was his way of self-conviction, or, in other words, his excuse to avoid dealing with his feelings.

He truly cherished their moments together, though. He especially loved to see Lan Zhan taking care of the animals. The boy was always around the farm, looking after every single one of them. However, Wei Ying found it funny how obvious it was that he had a soft spot for the little white bunnies. Although he didn’t seem to do so well with the kids, being a bit too strict at times, they still loved him.

As time passed by, they even felt comfortable enough to be vulnerable with each other. One night, Wei Ying told Lan Zhan about his childhood. It was not an easy one, losing his parents at such a young age and having to survive in the streets all by himself. This hardship ended when Jiang FengMian picked him up from the streets and carried him home, treating him as his own son since day one. Although all of this happened a long time ago, it still made Wei Ying tear up.

Lan Zhan was not very good at comforting people, he never knew what to say or what to do. Still, just by being there, listening and letting him vent, Wei Ying felt a little better. After sharing his story, Lan Zhan started talking. He told him how he had lost his mother when he was a kid, too. He didn’t share too many details about this episode of his life, though, but Wei Ying could still feel how heartbroken he was just by the sound of his voice, and also noticed the mist in his eyes, giving away the effort that he was making to keep his tears in. As bitter as it was to see him like this, he was still glad that the other one had felt comfortable enough to speak out about this with him.

\--

As all of these memories flashed back to his mind, he saw Lan Zhan get into the train and go out of his sight. Wei Ying couldn’t hold himself anymore and tears started streaming down his face. The knot in his throat was getting bigger to the point that it felt like it was going to break. The rail station had a little roof to take shelter from the rain. Wei Ying, however, decided to stay still right next to the railway, feeling the raindrops mingle with his tears.

All in all, everything comes to an end eventually. He kept repeating the word ‘stay’ in his head, as if saying it enough times would make Lan Zhan get off the train and go back to him. But he was well aware that he would have to keep this thought to himself. How selfish would that be? Saying it out loud would only make it worse, because even if the other guy did, in fact, want to stay, he wouldn’t do it. Lan Wangji was an extremely responsible person and he was the one to always put family first, so he knew had to go back home to his brother and his father. 

Lan Zhan’s town was 8 hours away, which was not that bad if they were to decide to keep in touch. However, neither of them had proposed to do so. At the end of the day, where would that take them, anyway? Lan Zhan’s brother would most likely come back to the camp (if he were to return) in the years to come, so it would be pointless for Lan Zhan to go back again anymore. For all that, they would both keep a heartwarming memory of this summer.

Wei Ying waited until the lights of the train got lost into the horizon and they weren’t visible anymore. He pulled himself together, drying his tears (as useless as it was after being under the soaking rain for that long) and smiled to himself. Lan Zhan, who was already crossing the valley between the mountains, and Wei Ying, finally sheltered from the rain, couldn’t help it but unconsciously try to look back, even knowing they wouldn’t be able to see the other, and said to themselves at the same time: _In the mist of time, let’s meet again._

**Author's Note:**

> Shout out to mlus and nerea for bearing with my mental breakdowns and indecisiveness through this (very short) process ily <3


End file.
